Clowning Around
by coffee dazed
Summary: Neela finds entertainment in a way she never expected


**Disclaimer:**I don't and never will own ER

**Note:**This is just a quick fic for mydoctortennant as I had promised a glittery finale for dance (on the basis that I confiscated her glitter bowl :p ) However, i hadn't been able to add said glitter.

I have no idea what level of residents or surgeons go to paediatric consults. It just sounds better for this fic to work so please forgive any (unintentional) mis-information

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Neela laughed as she watched the clown through the window. She had been called for a rare consult down to paediatrics – rare because it was usually an experienced surgeon who went in order to provide maximum reassurance to both child and parents and to have the ability to answer fully any questions that might be put to them. 

Having left the family she had gone to see in what she hoped was a positive frame of mind, she had begun to make her way back to surgery when she caught sight of the children's play area. There was a crowd of small faces lit up with glee as they laughed both with and at the clown who was entertaining them that morning. He was definitely one of the most colourful characters Neela had ever seen, even by clown standards and the children seemed to adore him, right from his big multi-coloured curly hair to the multi-colour striped shirt with spinning bow-tie to the regulation baggy trousers and braces completed by over-sized shiny red shoes. Of course, there was also the mandatory clown face – big painted black eyes under green eyebrows, rosy red cheeks on chalk-white face and giant painted smile finished with the piece de resistance, a big red nose that cleverly had a squeaker built into it so that his juvenile audience collapsed in fits of giggles every time he squeezed it.

The surgical resident moved to lean against the doorway that was positioned just behind and to one side of the performer. She had never really been that fond of clowns since being badly scared by one when she was quite small. Neela dimly recalled her mother taking her to the circus and while she had coped with the acrobats and other performers – even the man in the gorilla suit – one clown had come up to the audience but just a bit too close for the toddler's comfort. Following a startled pause, the infant Rasgotra had burst into wailing tears, which probably scared the clown just as much, to the point where she wouldn't settle until her mother had to make the decision to leave the show altogether.

Nevertheless, Neela had never seen an audience so entranced by slap-stick humour and rudimentary magic tricks like the sleight of hand 'coin-appearing-out-of-the-ear' trick and a '(toy) rabbit-out-of-the-hat' trick. She soon found herself just as enthralled as the children and let out an involuntary guffaw as the clown did the old 'slip-on-a-banana-skin' number.

Turning at the sound, the clown eyeballed the blue-scrubbed Indian woman and grinning, reached over to take her arm and pulled her into the activity room. As her dark eyes widened with surprise, they widened further when she realised that the eyes meeting hers were a more than familiar gold-flecked green! Not only did she never think rocker Ray Barnett would be a kiddies entertainer, she couldn't believe that she never recognised her roomie!

"Say hi to Dr. Neela, boys and girls."

A chorus of high-pitched voices called out, "Hi, Dr. Neela."

She waved a nervous hand, "Hi, everyone."

"Dr. Neela was here to help Janey and her mom and dad," clown-Ray informed his audience as they turned their heads to look at her with smiley faces. "Shall we give her a present?"

As one, the children responded with a loud and enthusiastic, "Yessss!"

Neela felt her legs go weak as her roomie smiled at her with amusement and… something else… tenderness?

She had no time to ponder though as he deftly reached into his frilly sleeve to pull out a bunch of plastic flowers that emerged in a shower of glitter and shiny paper confetti.

The children cheered at this latest 'magic' and their mouths formed 'oooh' shapes as their clown leaned over to plant a kiss on Dr. Neela's cheek, leaving a big red lip-shaped print on her quickly blushing face.

Before turning back to the children, her roomie leaned in and whispered, "I can make those real for you tonight if you want."

He flashed a speechless Neela a mysterious smile before saying, "Dr. Neela has to go back and help some more people now. Say goodbye, boys and girls."

Neela saw the wink the clown gave her as she bade goodbye and started her return to the land of grown-ups. In the elevator, she couldn't stop a dopey grin from appearing and she touched the place where Ray's lips had touched her.

_Crap!_

As she took her hand away, she saw the red make-up on her fingers. She would have to get rid of that before Crenshaw saw it. Reluctantly, Neela pulled a tissue out of her pocket and wiped at her cheek, her heart singing as she noted the red paint speckled with silvery dots that appeared on the paper.

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**Note:**i know, it's predictable but its a change from the angst. hope that satisfies anybody's appetite for glittery fluff :D x 


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